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Youth

California School Districts Unite Against JUUL Labs Amidst E-Cigarette Epidemic

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

School districts in California are overwhelmed trying to manage the pervasive "juuling" phenomenon, which has increased by tenfold since 2013, affecting over 1.175 million students across 31 districts. The surge in e-cigarette use has led to lawsuits filed by these districts against JUUL Labs Inc., alleging the company's role in creating an e-cigarette epidemic and resurgence in youth nicotine addiction that impedes learning environments in schools. A coalition of attorneys from Baron & Budd, Panish Shea & Boyle LLP, Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis and Miles, PC, Wagstaff & Cartmell, LLP, Goza & Honnold, LLC, and Walkup, Melodia, Kelly & Schoenberger is fighting against JUUL, working to combat the youth vaping epidemic.

Key Takeaways:

  • Thirty-one California school districts, serving over 1.175 million students, have filed lawsuits against JUUL Labs Inc. for creating an e-cigarette epidemic and resurgence in youth nicotine addiction.
  • The lawsuits, filed on behalf of Roseville Joint Union High School District, seek injunctive relief and abatement remedies to combat the e-cigarette epidemic, which has severely impacted the school districts by interfering with normal school operations.
  • The districts are also seeking compensatory damages to provide relief from the districts' financial losses due to students being absent from school, the extensive costs of outreach and education programs, and deploying enforcement restrictions such as vape detectors and surveillance systems.
  • JUUL has dominated the e-cigarette industry since entering the market in 2015, controlling over 70% of the market, and selling over a million e-cigarettes between 2015 and 2017.
  • The National Institute on Drug Abuse found that the 2018 spike in nicotine vaping was the largest for any substance recorded in 44 years, and the number of youth e-cigarette users increased by 1.5 million between 2017 and 2018.
  • The lawsuit alleges JUUL's aggressive marketing and product designs create an addiction crisis among youth consumers and a broader health crisis.

Statistics:

  • 31 California school districts have filed lawsuits against JUUL Labs Inc., serving over 1.175 million students.
  • The lawsuits seek injunctive relief and abatement remedy to combat the e-cigarette epidemic, impacting normal school operations.
  • JUUL controlled over 70% of the e-cigarette market since entering in 2015.
  • Over a million JUUL e-cigarettes were sold between 2015 and 2017.
  • The number of youth e-cigarette users increased by 1.5 million between 2017 and 2018.
  • The 2018 spike in nicotine vaping was the largest for any substance recorded in 44 years.

Sources:

  • Business Wire: "California School Districts with Suits Filed Against JUUL Labs, Inc."
  • Business Wire: "About Baron & Budd, P.C."
  • Business Wire: "About Panish Shea & Boyle LLP"

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